Why Student Credit Card Debt is so Easy to Fall Into

Making it easy

Visit any college orientation and you're guaranteed to see at least two or three credit card booths trying to entice students with free gifts, bonuses, and promises. Since it's a well known fact that these students are paying an arm and a leg for their post secondary education, why on earth do credit card companies target them?

Well, there are a variety of reasons. Credit card companies aren't necessarily trying to set you up for a pile of student credit card debt. Statistically, they know that most people stick with one or two credit cards, and they also know that college grads tend to make more money than those who don't pursue some sort of post secondary training.

In other words, they're trying to hook you now so they can take advantage of your potential earnings in the future. A lot of student credit card debt also tends to fall on students' parents, who are historically pretty reliable at paying off their children's debts. That makes students a surprisingly safe bet.

The pros and cons

So far it sounds like the smart cookies should avoid credit cards altogether, but that's not necessarily the best plan either. After all, graduating with no credit history is almost as bad as graduating with a negative credit history. Either way, no one's going to want to loan you money -- and in our modern economic climate, that's a big problem if you ever want to own a car or a house.

On the other hand, it's way too easy to let a credit card get out of hand. The best bet? Get the card, but make only small purchases and always pay the minimum payment every single month. That way, you keep your student credit card debt to a manageable level while building a positive credit rating.